


Before You're Gone

by Autumn_Ignited, SailUncharted



Series: Puddles and Coals: One Shots for our Lovelies [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Body Worship, Bottom Keith (Voltron), Crying, Emotional Sex, M/M, Soft Keith/Lance (Voltron), Top Lance (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2020-04-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:40:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23824711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Autumn_Ignited/pseuds/Autumn_Ignited, https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailUncharted/pseuds/SailUncharted
Summary: After a close call where he almost loses Keith, Lance needs to prove to himself that they're together and both still alive.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Series: Puddles and Coals: One Shots for our Lovelies [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1966975
Comments: 6
Kudos: 382





	Before You're Gone

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Luscena](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Luscena/gifts).



> Autumn: This was a commission for the lovely Luscena, which is a huge honor, given that she's one of my absolute favorite artists! The request was for soft, emotional sex after a close call, with pet names and lots of tears. I hope we delivered! Thank you for the chance to bring your vision to life, and I hope you enjoy :) 
> 
> Sail: thank you so much Luscena for commissioning us. It means a lot that you'd give us a chance! I hope you like this as much as we do <3
> 
> If you'd like your own personalized fic [click right here!](https://linktr.ee/sailunchartedwaters)
> 
> Also check out our Twitter to hang out [Autumn Ignited](https://twitter.com/AutumnIgnited) and [SailUnchartedWaters](https://twitter.com/SailUnchartd)

It was over in a second. 

Hardly a whole second. 

Lance was watching the ship, and then there was nothing left but a silent explosion in the vacuum of space, debris and scraps of metal flying off into the infinite dark. 

He’d definitely screamed - raw and roaring and damn near feral. The single syllable ripped from his throat again and again until Hunk broke through, yelling his name, saying, “He’s here, man. He’s okay. We got him. He escaped on a pod.”

He hadn’t stopped hyperventilating until he’d heard Keith over the comms, panting but whole. “I’m here, Lance. I’m here.”

There hadn’t been time for anything more concrete or reassuring than that. The battle continued in a blur, but whether that was mentally or from the wavering of unshed tears, he didn’t know. When they docked in the hangar, Red lowered her jaw before Lance had even pressed the release. Her rumble at the base of his neck was urgent, if understanding. 

_ Check him for me as well,  _ she seemed to say.  _ I still care for him, too.  _

“Will do,” Lance murmured, stroking a passing hand along the metal walls that made up her jaw as he stumble-jogged over to Yellow. 

Keith was leaning on Hunk as they descended the ramp, looking winded but otherwise unharmed. Keith glanced up and smiled, but his face immediately crumpled into worry. Lance couldn’t blame him. He probably looked like a hot mess, and the manic urgency pressing him forward likely wasn’t doing him any favors, either. 

“Lance -” Keith began, but a stern glare shut him up. Hunk unwound Keith’s arm from around his neck and patted his back, mumbling a quick “Glad you’re safe, dude,” and beat a hasty retreat. 

Alone with Keith, Lance grabbed his wrist - rough, too rough, he should be gentle - but he couldn’t do anything but drag Keith along. 

The protests came weak from Keith’s raspy throat. “Where are we going? Lance, we gotta check the-”

Lance whirled on him and narrowed his eyes. Keith looked beyond confused, a little bit lost, like a puppy who knew it was in trouble but couldn’t remember what it had done wrong. He was backlit, in that corridor, by the entirety of space, and the purple glow of his Marmora uniform cast his face into unusual shadows. 

They didn’t make it much farther. Lance backed him up - back, back, until he was braced against the thick glass and framed everywhere by stars. Keith started to say his name again, but Lance surged forward, stealing it away in a kiss so desperate and forceful he felt more than he heard when Keith gasped. Lance broke it off, panting, staring into Keith’s eyes for a half-second just to reassure himself that they were still his to look into.  _ Still alive _ , he chanted to himself.  _ He’s still alive, still alive, still alive _ . 

The next kiss was softer, but the need hadn’t banked at all. He ran his hands up Keith’s sides and lifted him up, pressed him against the glass. Immediately, Keith wound his legs around Lance’s waist and opened up to him, pliant and content to let Lance explore as much as he needed. He had memorized the way Keith tasted, the dark, woodsy smell of Galra soap. He’d smelled that way for months now, instead of the bright scent from the castle showers. One more reminder that Keith was temporary now - a ghost that was bound to always disappear. 

He’d be gone in the morning, off to wherever the hell else the Blade would send him. Lance wasn’t sure he could handle it again. After coming so close to losing him tonight, he couldn’t stand the thought of letting him go. 

He bit down hard on the meat between Keith’s neck and shoulder, dulled by the suit but enough to make Keith hiss. “Lance.” Lance ignored him, trailing those rough, desperate bites up to his jaw. “Lance! What’s gotten into you?”

Any other night, he would have waggled his eyebrows and said “Hopefully you, cariño,” but tonight he just whimpered and buried his face into the hollow of Keith’s neck. He could feel Keith’s fingers running through his hair and he knew he was probably scaring Keith with his behavior. 

Gathering himself as best he could, he whispered, “I thought I’d lost you.”

Keith melted against him, pressing him closer by the back of his head. “Oh, Lance. You know I wasn’t-”

“I saw the ship explode,” Lance interrupted him. “And I thought I’d lost you.”

He pulled back and stared hard at Keith, daring him to deny or belittle it once more. Keith searched his face and sighed, tipping his chin up to press a kiss to Lance’s forehead. “Okay,” he said, because they both knew he couldn’t say  _ I’m sorry.  _ There was no “I’m sorry” in war. He wasn’t doing anything Lance wouldn’t do. “Okay. What do you need?”

And wow, look how far they’d come. The Keith of a year ago would never have thought to ask that - just fumbled helplessly with a desire to comfort and no idea what to do. Lance wrapped him up tight and Keith held on, nuzzling at his ear to move the hair aside enough that he could kiss it. 

“My room,” Lance managed.

“Okay,” Keith said. 

They walked. Usually, when they knew they were going to his room for this specific purpose, they staggered and giggled and bumped against the wall to sneak a few more heated kisses. Tonight they just walked, the backs of their fingers brushing now and then. Somehow, that felt more intimate than anything these hallways had ever seen them do. 

At Lance’s door, he pressed his palm to the panel and they stepped wordlessly inside. 

As soon as the door hissed shut and his ambient lighting came on, Lance turned and looked at Keith. His hair was mussed and he had a smudge of something black on his cheek, but he was otherwise unmarred. He closed his eyes and submitted to inspection when Lance cupped his cheeks, turning his head side to side just to make sure. 

“I almost lost you,” Lance repeated, but this time, the fire had changed color. He wasn’t angry. He was just helpless. Lost. Desperate for a way to feel as close to Keith as possible. 

Keith turned his head to kiss one of Lance’s palms. “But you didn’t. I’m right here. I’m fine. We’re both fine.” 

_ Fine. _ There was nothing  _ fine  _ about this _.  _ Months in space chasing death every day, and it had never seemed real before tonight. It was easy to feel invincible in the most powerful machine ever built, but the reality was that they were all still candle flames wrapped in fallible flesh. Any battle - every battle - they could come back one team member less, and Keith called it  _ fine.  _ The anger and sour fear boiled over, spilling into hot tears that ran down his cheeks, words he couldn’t express taking liquid form that caught in his eyelashes as he glared at Keith.

Keith made a strained, distressed sound - a little mewl of pain - and wiped them away with his thumbs, bringing Lance in for a kiss. He tasted a little bit like ash and Lance chased after it, kissing and lapping at his mouth until all that was left was the taste he’d come to know. Keith moaned against him, sucking in a gasp when Lance bit his lower lip and tugged, watching it snap back into place, rosy and plump. Keith’s eyes were dazed, and Lance knew then that he needed this just as badly. He was likely just as shaken up, just as scared.

They were more than practiced at stripping each other’s armor and clothes, and soon Keith was standing in front of him, eyes hooded and lips gone red. He ran a hand through his dark hair before diving back in, sucking on Lance’s tongue until Lance groaned into his mouth. 

This wasn’t about him, though. Tonight, he wanted -  _ needed  _ \- to make Keith feel real. For the both of them. 

“Lay down for me?” he hummed against the whorl of Keith’s ear, earning him a shiver and goosebumps. Keith obeyed, settling on the bed and reaching up for Lance, who was happy to stretch over him and cover him up. He lowered himself down and pressed a kiss against his right ear, blowing softly in it until Keith shivered again. He’d long ago crafted an internal star map of all the places Keith loved to be kissed, the things that would make him tremble. He intended on revisiting them all tonight.

From his ear, Lance kissed a path under his jaw until Keith lifted his chin, licking at the skin of his lips, now slightly chapped. Lance mouthed his way down Keith’s neck, drawing constellations with the drag of his lips. From above him, he could hear Keith drinking sips of air, felt the rise and fall of his chest. 

“You’re beautiful,” he whispered against the shadows of Keith’s collarbone. “Fuck, Keith. You’re so beautiful it aches to look at you.”

Above him, Keith gave a huff of a laugh, but when he realized Lance was being serious, Lance felt the flush that raced down his chest. 

Slow, careful, he kissed his way over to Keith’s right nipple and pressed the tip of his tongue against it, swirling in wet circles until it stood in a hard peak. “I think about you,” he admitted, as if it was remotely a secret. “All the time.” He took the nipple between his front teeth and gave it a little nip that had Keith gasping and pushing his chest up for more. “I can’t stop thinking about you.”

Keith must have sensed that Lance needed to talk, needed to express the things that were boiling inside him before they burned him alive. By now, he usually would have made some sort of smartassed comment, too embarrassed to deal with Lance’s abject flattery. Instead, he just stroked a hand through Lance’s hair, encouraging him to continue. 

This was about making them both feel alive, but that didn’t necessarily mean he could stand to take things slow. Lance was quiet for a while as he sucked and kissed his way to Keith’s other nipple to give it fair treatment and, yeah, Keith definitely still liked that a lot. He could feel how hard Keith was, pressed together as they were. His cheeks were wine-red and his eyes were distant as he looked at the ceiling. 

“Eyes on me,” Lance commanded. “Look at me, Keith.”

Keith looked down the length of his torso, locking eyes with Lance while he trailed kisses down to his navel, then followed the line of dark hair to the space between his thighs. “That’s it, sweetheart,” Lance praised, and had to hold Keith’s thighs open when they tried to shut around his head. 

He took Keith’s cock in his hand, thick and pretty and dark at the head. There was a pearlescent bead of precum leaking from his slit, and Lance lapped it up before kissing the tip. Keith groaned and squirmed at the light touch, but Lance wasn’t ready to move on. He kissed his way down the shaft - hot, open-mouthed kisses that left a wet trail to his balls. Pretty, like the rest of him. Lance had never thought of dicks as particularly pretty before, but here was Keith, always taking him by surprise and challenging what he thought he knew. 

“Lance…” 

Lance looked up and smiled softly at how flushed Keith was. “What is it, baby?”

Keith bit his lip, then shook his head. As usual, he’d probably been about to demand that Lance hurry up. Keith was always impatient in bed, as much as he was anywhere else, but the fact that he’d caught himself and was allowing Lance to do whatever he pleased...It made Lance’s eyes well up again. 

Because goddamn did he love this boy. 

And it was time to show him just how much. 

Lance dipped lower and rolled his tongue over Keith’s balls. As expected, Keith nearly jolted off the bed, but didn’t quite manage to strangle the cry of pleasure that wrenched from him. They had only done this once or twice, but Keith had loved every second of it. He was sensitive, almost to the point of pain, so Lance was careful with his kisses. He alternated kissing and gently lapping at them until Keith’s thighs were quivering. 

“God, Keith,” he murmured, licking a long stripe up the thick vein on the underside of Keith’s cock. “You sound so pretty, baby. Don’t hold back - not tonight. Please.”

And damn was it ever a thrill to have battle-hardened, tough-as-nails Keith under him, whining and needy and gasping out these sweet, desperate cries. “That’s it,” he praised, “Let me hear how much you want me.”

“Lance,” Keith breathed. “Fuck. Please.”

“Tell me what you want. Anything, love. It’s yours.”

Keith looked down at him, lips parted as he panted. “Want you to fuck me,” he said quietly. 

“You sure?” Lance lapped at his slit again until Keith groaned. “This can be all about you. I want to make you feel good.”

“I’m sure,” Keith reiterated, sitting forward to pull Lance up enough to kiss. It was hot and messy, and the bitterness of his precum only made it better. When they broke, they were both panting in the damp air between them. “I want to feel you inside me. Around me.” His eyes made it clear that he was thinking what Lance was feeling:  _ Make me ache. Remind me that I’m alive. Remind me that we’re both still here.  _

It was enough. Lance caved almost instantly in the full force of those eyes, indigo-grey and always so intense. He kissed Keith again in answer even as he fumbled in the bedside drawer. 

When he sat up, Keith had his legs propped up and open, ready and waiting for Lance. It was practical, sure, but the amount of trust Keith displayed in him was staggering, and not for the first time Lance told himself - keep him alive. Keep him safe. That’s your future, right there. 

He pressed the pad of his finger against Keith’s entrance and waited for Keith to relax. It didn’t take long; they’d done this plenty of times, and it became easier and easier as Keith learned his own body right along with Lance. Even as he sank into the first knuckle, Keith was already trying to push his hips down to take him further in. 

“Easy, there,” Lance said fondly. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You’re not going to hurt me.” Keith scoffed, impatience finally seeping through. “Come on, Lance - please. I need this. Please.”

And how could he say no to that? He crooked his finger and pressed up, rewarded handsomely when Keith cried out, high and long, and his hands scrambled for something to hold. He protested when Lance eased up, but went docile once more when Lance added a second finger and eventually a third. 

It was never going to get old - the wonder of feeling Keith from the inside. His heat, his core, the tight squeeze of him - all of it felt amazing when Lance was buried inside him, but it was the knowledge of how monumental the permission to do so was. Keith allowed it. Keith wanted it. And most importantly, Keith wanted it only with him. 

And with a few seconds’ difference, they might have never gotten the chance to do this again. Lance had to slam his eyes shut on the image of the ship exploding, the slow-motion horror of knowing Keith couldn’t have survived. If he hadn’t - if Keith had  _ gone - _ if he’d lost this - 

“Hey.” Lance looked up as Keith used the back of his finger to wipe away tears he hadn’t realized were falling again. “Are you with me?”

Lance let out a shuddery breath. “Always.”

Again with those eyes. Keith brought their foreheads together and looked up at him through the dark fan of his lashes. “Love you,” he said, soft and husky, voice like dry leaves in autumn. 

It made his blood pound every time. Lance sighed again, rubbing the side of his nose against Keith’s. “I love you too.”

“Show me.”

He sank in on one smooth push, listening for any indication that Keith was hurting. All he received was a pleased hum and strong legs wrapping around his waist as Keith lowered himself back down. They started slow, just experiencing the tight drag and the sensation of being full. Then Lance caught the look Keith gave him, thick with the urge to beg, and he relented. They’d waited long enough. 

His hips picked up a rhythm and Keith bounced down to meet him, thrust for thrust. The slap of their skin was so loud in the otherwise empty room, but Lance loved it, lived for the visceral sound of it and the way it complemented Keith’s voice. He got so high-pitched when he was getting fucked, soft moans of “ _ Nn-nng _ -Lance- _ ah _ !” that drove Lance harder. Like everything between them, it became a competition. How high could he go? How many of those sweet sounds could Lance fuck out of him? 

He didn’t bother keeping track. All he wanted to do was watch the adorable way Keith’s eyebrows drew together and his nose scrunched up the closer he got to coming. 

“Keith, look at me,” Lance pleaded again, breathless as his hips snapped forward faster. 

Keith’s eyes just squeezed tighter. 

“Come on, baby, open your eyes - I have to see you when you come. Please, Keith - please.” 

One eye cracked up, then the other. They were glassy and wet and it took Lance a moment to realize Keith was crying. 

“That’s it,” Lance coaxed, fighting off the hot coil in his belly. Not yet. Not before Keith. “You getting close?” Keith nodded. “Gonna come for me, baby?” Keith nodded more frantically. Jesus, he couldn’t even  _ speak _ . Lance was going to lose it soon.

“Touch me,” Keith commanded, and Lance wrapped a hand around his cock. “Come inside me. Fill me up, Lance. Please,  _ please. _ ”

Helplessly, he obeyed. A few quick strokes and Keith’s back arched, his entire body taut and his mouth open in a silent scream as he shot ribbons of white across his stomach. Lance shuddered and followed him over, pulse after pulse of his own cum painting Keith’s insides. 

Foreheads pressed together, they panted, both lost in their orgasms and the feeling of each other. Wet eyelashes fluttered against damp cheeks and their tears fell down Keith’s face, mingling - a baptism of pain and longing.

Lance’s arms shook with the strain of holding himself up. As much as he wanted to stay pressed to Keith forever, his body wasn’t going to let him. He tried to roll over, but Keith pulled Lance’s full weight down on his own chest with a quiet  _ oof _ . He could feel Keith’s cum sticking them together, but he couldn’t care less. He just reveled in the sound of Keith’s beating heart under his ear. 

They lay that way for some time, sweat cooling and heartbeats slowing. Lance had sunk into the place halfway between sleep and wakefulness when Keith spoke.

“I’m not going back with them. Not yet.”

“Hm?” Lance lifted his head and blinked at him.

Keith smiled, small and fond. “I’m staying with you for a few days. Kolivan gave me permission.”

Lance frowned in confusion. “That’s...that’s great! I mean, I’m thrilled but, don’t they really need you right now? Things are pretty hot out there.”

Keith kissed his forehead and ran his hand through Lance’s sweat-damp hair. “I double checked, and it would be July on Earth right now. So - maybe they do, but they’ll have to do without. It’s my boyfriend’s birthday and the only place I need to be right now is with you.” 

His birthday. Fuck. With the war and the training and the saving the goddamned universe, even Lance himself had forgotten about his birthday. But  _ Keith.  _ He hadn’t just remembered, he’d calculated and planned, took time off from the Blade,  _ for him _ . His short-sighted boyfriend that used to make decisions on a whim had made Lance’s  _ birthday, _ of all things, a priority in his life. Lance was a priority in Keith’s life. Fuck.  _ This is what love is,  _ Lance thought, and there went the tears again. This time, though, Lance was laughing. 

“You’re...you’re ridiculous, you know that, right?”

Keith smiled. “Yeah, but I’m yours.”

He was. And he was here. Right here.

And tomorrow wouldn’t be here for hours.

And right then? That was enough for Lance. 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! We hope you liked this little slice of cute smut <3
> 
> Want your own, personalized just for you? [please check out our info](https://linktr.ee/sailunchartedwaters)
> 
> *Jazz hands* twitter! a href="https://twitter.com/AutumnIgnited" rel="nofollow">Autumn Ignited and [SailUnchartedWaters](https://twitter.com/SailUnchartd)


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